Well let me put it this way 1000s upon 1000s of people used to be able to walk out into the bush back in the 1970s-80s and sometimes in the 1990s. Now you have to have a laptop, satalite service and the brain of a university wizard to go out and enjoy your hobbie. Station owners and Mining companies have just about the whole country tied up and how many times have you seen BHP, Rio Tinto staff or station owners out finding that little 3 grammer in a creek bed? Yep a greedy few have ruined it for maybe 100s of 1000s of Aussie hobbyists.At least that is my view, but there will be a few that find it is easier to fall into line.

Well...I was detecting back then as well Young Simmo...with my Dad. Fact was that there were a fraction of the tenements that there are today and a fraction of the people out prospecting. These day's the country is not tied up, the vast majority is accessible if you go about things the right way....yep....a few more hoops to jump through mate...but it's not that much different to what it was 'back then'. The country is not 'tied up' you just have to approach it in the right way. I would say it's the modern day hobby detectorists that are buggering it up for themselves and everyone else. It's because so many are going where they like and with no regard to the law it's giving plenty of ammunition for those that want to stop prospectors. So much so Young Simmo....I am starting to hear conversations from professional prospectors (of which I am one) that are along the lines of trying to get rid of hobby detectorists...I can assure you that when prospectors turn on hobby dectorists then your day's are well and truly numbered.

while i dont agree with "poaching" on other peoples tenements, i dont like that mining companies can hold so much land and do nothing with it. some mates of mine have a lease east of Kal we have been going out there for about 4 years now all the land around them is tied up mostly as M leases and in 4 years they have not seen any activity on these leases, now if the big companies (and some private guys) want to hold the land and not do anything with it then why not hold it as an E block so the little guy can at least do the right thing and get access with a 40e just a thought

Hi Selfy...don't forget..anyone can take out a tenement....you can't just say...."company's tie up ground'...why don't you take up an E?? Also...how do you know they are not doing anything with it??? Are you sure???? if so, the process is available through the wardens court to plaint them and take it off them. I'm not having a go at you selfy, but I hear the 'big company tying up ground' argument all the time. Mostly the comment is based on ignorance of how things work and secondly the selfish bastard mentality of wanting to go prospecting where you want but not being prepared to commit financially. Yes there are definately people that tie up ground....real estaters....but they also leave themself vunerable to SPL applications and Plaints...the system can work for you if you take the time to learn it.

yeah Pilko my mates are about to put an SPL on one of the blocks surrounding theirs, one of the M leases next to theirs is privately owned in the 4 years they have been there (pushing most weekends) they have never seen the guy and nothing has been done on the lease i know of 2 guys that have approached him to sell and he wont, probably waitng for the mining company to make an offer as you say "real estate agent" as are many other private guys. and you are spot on with regards to learning the system I for one still have plenty of learning to do in that area, but if like your gold the same as your eggs "poached" then be prepared to cop the consequences, we all know the rules

again..not trying to be a smart ar*e...you can only apply for an SPL on a M with the written permission from the tenement holder....P's and E's are different. If you or your mates try and plaint him then do your homework. Motion activated cameras are wonderful things. Have them set up on ALL tracks for a year (during the reporting period) and then wait for what comes out in his Form 5. Your looking to disprove his form 5...the onus is on you to prove him a liar...and that's very hard to do. Also...if he puts in applications for exemption from expenditure get in contact with me....there are angles you can take to commence proceedings against him in the wardens court.....it will be bloody but your not there for fun and friends. Thanks for not taking offence with my comments....sometimes I come across wrong. Cheers Tony Pilkington.

no offence taken, the SPL they are thinking about is on a P lease held by the mining company that holds most of the land around them, the form 5 I take it is the expenditure that you claim to have done for the lease ?? solar camera's are becoming a must for lease holders that have a bit of gear at the lease or full time caretakers which can become messy, we were out for 6 weeks this year on their lease and had 4 "visitors" these guys have a loader, digger 2 sea containers and a donga water tanks bbq etc etca lot of gear to let the not so trusty pick thru, not that i'm saying our visitors were like that most were just lost and required some direction back to the trans line cheers Selfy

yea right...your more forgiving than me mate.....yep..form 5 is the paperwork that you fill out listing your expenditure for the year.

The other point I would make is....again...not knowing the circumstances.....but discussion is always better than legal action.Maybe the neighbours would work a tribute...your friends get 90% and they get expenditure...happens a lot and can work well.Good luck to your friends with their SPL.

Yep all this complicated, techical Hoo Haa above, is exactly what I am upset with. Tennis players just walk onto the court, Footballers just walk onto the ground. Detectorists go and buy a laptop, and a GPS,and learn and get Wireless inter net, do and learn about as much as a Brain Surgeon does. Then after hours of study goes out and does some detecting and doesn't realise that while he is detecting somebody is at the mines dept privatising the spot he detected.YEP, it use to be easy.

Yes Nightjar I have almost done the round trip. My Father died on his 43rd birthday and I am half way between 77 an 78 so I am definitely cheating the system. Oh well Grand Dad on Mum's side went to 96, so I can still chuck a few rocks into the pool. Come on somebody tell me I have changed the subject.

OK while I am here, I am putting my lifes experiences onto computer and the following few lines are just a bit of the current 12 or so pages and somebody might find it interesting.Here goes::OK, now what else have I done that is worth talking about, Oh yes, metal detecting, ing, ing, ing. Around about 1976-7 metal detectors were just coming into vogue and had my fascination. In 1979 I hired a metal detector on 3 or 4 occasions and we went up to Kookynie about 150 Kilometers north of Kalgoorlie. We hired a caravan from a mob in Scarborough, and stayed at the Kookynie hotel for $1 per person per night which included power and hot shower, and our van was parked about 20 feet from the main bar, YEHOWWWWWW. Then in 1980 I bought my first of about 6 detectors and found something like 85 to 90 ounces over 20 years. While we were traveling around Aust and staying 5 months in Cairns with Robert, I kept selling small amounts to keep our car payments up on our Toyota Troopy. When I got down to the last 20 Oz's or so, there was a story in the West Australian Newspaper about a dozen blokes up in Coolgardie who had been caught by the Taxation Dept for selling and not declaring. So I sold my last 20 or so Oz's on the American E-Bay. The Yanks absolutely love West Australian gold and even though the Aust price was around $18 per gram, I was getting around $30 / gram from the Yanks.OK that's my waffle for this Sunday night, nigh, nigh.Simmo.How are you going Steve, back from your trip yet?

Golditch I'm not exactly sure of what you mean, but what I am sure of is some idiot sitting in an air conditioned office down in St Georges Tce, can have an enormous amount of gold nuggets tied up out in the bush, so I can't go and find it. He has no intention of ever finding it himself, and because of sheer greed he stops me from finding it. One day you will need a Miners Right to go for a dip at Scarborough beach.